


Angel on Fire

by lakeffectkids



Category: Countdown to Countdown (Webcomic)
Genre: M/M, i wrote this for a friend please enjoy first kisses and shy iris, this was literally just fluff, with a little hint of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-19
Updated: 2017-08-19
Packaged: 2018-12-17 04:54:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11844342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lakeffectkids/pseuds/lakeffectkids
Summary: Iris thinks that maybe Lillium doesn't like him as much as much as he likes Lillium. Or maybe they're both just dense.





	Angel on Fire

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for a friend of mine while being drunk on a Friday night. I apologized for any mistakes. Un-beta'd.

Iris’ palms were sweaty, his nerves on end. He couldn’t remember the last time that he had been this nervous about anything. Lillium had taken the two of them out to an amusement park for their date. He’d never been to an amusement park before, but when the world isn’t ending in a complete disaster anymore you can learn to enjoy the little things, like going on roller coasters with your… boyfriend?

 

Iris wasn’t sure if he could call Lillium that. They hadn’t actually made anything official yet, but Iris would like to hope that they were something exclusive now. Lillium had been taking him out on dates pretty frequently now but had never said anything about it and Iris didn’t like to assume. He’s barely been listening to what Lillium has been saying, too busy playing with the frayed ends of his t-shirt as he watches the people of the park walking by, laughing and playing the park games. 

 

“Hey, earth to Iris--” The man turns to face Lillium just as Lillium gives a light flick to his forehead and smiles. “I asked if you were willing to go and ride one of the rides with me?”

 

“Oh--sure,” Iris follows the taller man to one of the rides, watching as everyone is screaming and he feels his stomach drop. He’s a little nervous about this, but he trusts Lillium’s opinion that he’ll have fun. His fingers twitch a little and he looks over at Lillium as he listens to the man animatedly talk about how he used to always go to amusement parks as a kid and that he’s missed them, and he hopes that Iris likes it but that if he doesn’t it’s okay, they don’t have to go on any more rides.   
  
“You worry too much,” Iris teases, but he’s thankful that he knows Iris wouldn’t push him to do something that he’s not comfortable with. “It doesn’t hurt to try it once, yeah?” He gives a look down at Lillium’s hands, his own hand hesitant as he grasps onto the bottom of his jacket, subconsciously wiping his sweaty palms onto his pants as they make their way up the line, nearing the front.   
  


“Are you sure that you’re okay?” Lillium asks, tilting his head to look at Iris’ face, the smaller man looking up at him from under his bangs. Lillium had noticed the other’s nervous behaviours, being able to pick up on them after being around Iris for so long.

 

“Ah--yeah, don’t worry about it,” Iris says. “It’s my first time on a rollercoaster and everything, so I’m a little nervous about it,” it’s a lie but he hopes that Lillium doesn’t see right through it.

 

If Lillium had, he doesn’t comment on it.

 

\---

 

It had been a week since the amusement park, and Iris learned from trial and error that, while he enjoys the adrenaline rush from the rides, they’re really not for him. They had spent the rest of their remaining time at the amusement park that night playing a bunch of the carnival games, Iris had three new stuffed animals to show for it. He’d told Lillium that he really didn’t need any of them, but he had insisted that he wanted to make up for Iris not really enjoying his time on the rollercoaster.

 

The night is quiet, they had started to make this a habit; going on nightly walks. Iris enjoyed these. The walks helped him to clear his head and the slightly chilly fall air was his favorite weather.

 

Iris decides to bite the bullet and go for it. He reaches down, his hand hesitating as if wanting to have second thoughts about it before his fingers brush against Lillium’s palm and the man pulls away on instinct. “Oh, sorry about that.”

 

Iris’ heart instantly sinks into his stomach, and suddenly he doesn’t feel like walking anymore. He had been thinking that maybe, after what had happened at the amusement park that maybe Lillium had liked him back, but now…

 

Iris is quiet the rest of the time that they’re walking, barely giving any little comments on what Lillium is saying, mostly doing it when he is prompted to do so. He’s hardly looking over at the man, either. His eyes focusing on anything else, because anything else is interesting enough to focus on then the pain that he’s feeling in his chest.

 

Iris starts to feel relief as they’re rounding back, coming up near the block where his house is.

 

“So I was thinking that tomorrow we could maybe-- Iris?” 

 

The man turns toward him, seeing Lillium giving him a questioning glance. “You’ve been acting really weird all week,” He explains and frowns. “Look--if there’s something that’s bothering you I want you to be able to talk to me about it, alright?” He asks.

 

“Do you even like me?” Iris asks without meaning to. He had meant to tell Lillium not to worry about it and that everything was okay. But then he would be lying, and he couldn’t bring himself to do that now. He needed to know, because if there wasn’t any chance of the two of them having anything then he didn’t want to get himself attached, he’d rather get the heartbreak over with now so that he can take time for himself to heal.

 

“What--Iris, what are you talking about?” Lillium has stopped walking now to turn and face Iris, and Iris  _ really  _ doesn’t want to talk about this right now but now that the can has been opened, it’s spilling everywhere. 

 

“Earlier when I--” He’s frustrated now that he’s thinking about the right way to say this without sounding super petty about it. “When I tried to hold your hand. You just--pulled away. You don’t really have to apologize about it, either. Like… if you don’t like me, that’s okay. You don’t  _ need  _ to, it’s just like… I don’t know, maybe I was the only one that had been thinking this whole time that we were actually maybe dating, so if you don’t like me I’d rather you tell me now so that I can get over it and move on.”

 

For a moment Lillium is dumbfounded. How long had Iris been thinking this? He hesitates before he gives a small laugh and brushes his fingers through his hair and pushes it away from his face. “I’m a real dumbass aren’t I,” He says and grins before he reaches down and grips onto the boy’s hand, their fingers lacing together as he moves to step into Iris’ face.

 

“I like you, Iris. I like you  _ a lot.  _ I was just afraid that maybe you would think I was moving too fast, and I wanted to take things at your pace, not even realizing to stop and maybe ask how you were feeling about it, too,” His forehead brushes against Iris’ and for a moment Iris can’t breathe, all he can see is lavender eyes and pink hair and Lillium is pulling away again.

 

“Oh.” It’s all that Iris can manage to get out before they’re walking again, letting everything from the last thirty seconds sink in as they’re coming up his sidewalk and up onto the front porch. Lillium is standing on the step below him, at eye level with Iris as he takes both of Iris’ hands into his own.

 

“Iris Black,” Lillium starts as he looks at the other. “This is me officially asking you out,” the smile on his face is like home and it’s the brightest thing that Iris has ever seen. Iris turns to look away as he squeezes Lillium’s hands, his cheeks a bright shade of scarlet with embarrassment before he looks up at Lillium from under his bangs once more. “... Okay.” He says, his voice is soft.

 

“Okay?”

 

Iris is nodding.

 

Lillium laughs, and Iris’ stomach is flipping with butterflies again. He thinks that he can listen to that sound for the rest of his life. 

 

“I’m going to kiss you now. Is that okay?”

 

Iris can’t even speak now, he just nods as Lillium’s one hand moves to cup the bottom of Iris’ jaw to lean in and press his lips to the other man’s. It doesn’t last very long, but Iris will remember it. Lillium is pulling away, tilting his head to the side with a flirty smile. “Goodnight, Iris Black. I’ll see you tomorrow?”   
  
“Uh--yeah,” Iris wants to slap his forehead. He’s barely been able to give Lillium a coherent reply for the last ten minutes. He hopes he doesn’t look like a complete idiot.

 

Lillium pulls his hands away and heads down the stairs and heads down the sidewalk, talking once last glance at Iris to wave at him before he rounds the corner. Iris opens the door and goes inside quickly, leaning his back against the door after he closes it.

He can’t stop smiling.


End file.
